Royal Charter

SDC’s most significant milestone to date was being awarded a Royal Charter in 1963.

What is a Royal Charter?

Royal Charters, granted by the sovereign on the advice of the Privy Council, have a history dating back to the 13th century. Their original purpose was to create public or private corporations (including towns and cities), and to define their privileges and purpose. Nowadays, though Charters are still occasionally granted to cities, new Charters are normally reserved for bodies that work in the public interest (such as professional institutions and charities) and which can demonstrate pre-eminence, stability and permanence in their particular field.

New grants of Royal Charters are these days reserved for eminent professional bodies or charities which have a solid record of achievement and are financially sound. In the case of professional bodies they should represent a field of activity which is unique and not covered by other professional bodies. Finally, both in the case of charities and professional bodies, incorporation by Charter should be in the public interest.

What does this mean to SDC?

Gaining a Royal Charter is much sought after and means that we are the only organisation in the world able to award the Chartered Colourist (CCol) status. We offer a range of internationally recognised training courses and qualifications, essential for career development and best practice performance.

The Royal Charter Document

Our Royal Charter actually is comprised of three documents which can be viewed here.